Livingston Escapees RV Park

The Escapees are an RV club headquartered here in Livingston, Texas. Since I am member #99916, numbered sequentially, I guess they have been around a long time. Escapees have a number of RV parks scattered around the country that draw their members because they offer both economy and the opportunity to socialize. In fact, this club goes one giant step farther in providing a "Care Center" for members of the club who are unable to travel any longer and need an assisted living arrangement.
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Chorro and I are settled in here for a couple of days. Since I need some maintenance done on my RV, the Escapees Park seemed like a good place to get recommendations for local servicing. And a good place to spend New Year's Eve as well.

Just down the road is a shop that repairs RV's and autos. We make this our first stop on the rejuvenating-the-RV trip. My RV has developed a rather troublesome vibration and thumping noise that seems to be coming from the rear of the vehicle. This shop is a family business and I'm treated very well. The owner/mechanic drives my RV and then has me drive it while he stands in the back listening to the noise. His conclusion is that it is not in the drive train (whew! that sounds expensive) but probably a problem with the tires. He thinks perhaps a bulge on a tire, a potentially dangerous problem that could result in a blowout. So he refers me to his friend the tire guy in town.

The tire guy obligingly removes our rear dual wheels, inspects them, rebalances and re-installs them. The report is "no bulges, but they were out of balance." To my chagrin, however, I drive off with the same vibration and thumping sound.

At least there are two problems I know I don't have now. Drive train is okay and tires are okay. So while I am puzzling what to do next, I find the guys who can change my oil. My RV doesn't fit in regular quick-lube type places, so I have to find someone who works with big rigs. So my oil-changing guys turn out to be tire guys too. Next time I will do one-stop shopping!


My RV is happier, but not truly happy. I'm not sure what to do next, and sometimes the best solutions need to be "slept on," so I will sleep on this one.

On our way back to the Escapees Park, we pass this shop. I know that Livingston, Texas, suffered wind damage from Hurricane Ike this past summer and I suppose this is an example. Ouch!

I am delighted to discover that I have a new next-door neighbor in the Park, another woman travelling alone. So I have a companion for the evening's activities, which include a movie and talent show. Unfortunately, I forgot my camera, so you will have to use your imagination about the talent show. Use it extravagantly!

All in all, today was a good day.